This invention relates generally to an electrical connector and, more particularly, to an electrical contact for an electrical connector and means for releasably retaining the contact in a contact cavity in the connector insulator.
For simplicity and economy, it is desirable to reduce the parts in an electrical connector to the fewest possible number. To this end, in the past, contacts have been retained in cavities in the insulator of an electrical connector by providing barbs on the contacts which have an interference fit with the walls of the cavities when the contacts are pushed into the cavities. The barbs prevent the contacts from being pushed out rearwardly from the insulator when the contacts engage with contacts on a mating connector member. It is often necessary to remove a contact from the connector insulator such as when a contact is damaged or is originally inserted into the wrong cavity in the insulator. The contact may be removed from the cavity only by pushing the contact rearwardly therefrom. Such removal causes the barbs on the contact to score the wall of the contact cavity. Since the wall of the cavity is damaged by the withdrawal of the contact, when a new contact is inserted into the same cavity, the contact retention strength of the assembly is substantially degraded. That is, the contact often will shift rearwardly in the insulator when it is engaged by the contact on a mating connector member, thereby adversely affecting the electrical engagement made between the two contacts.
It is the purpose of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned problem by providing a contact retention arrangement for a contact having retention barbs thereon which allows the barbs to be disengaged from the wall of the cavity in which the contact is mounted so that the contact may be withdrawn from the cavity without engaging the wall thereof.